Term economic science Definition: The application of the scientific method to economic phenomena. In other words, economists develop theories, test hypotheses, and seek to explain things like prices, unemployment rates, monopolize markets, business cycles, market shortages, and virtually everything else that might be considered economic "stuff." However, economic science is also directed toward phenomenon that might NOT be considered economics, including voting, crime, and leisure. The key element, however, is that all of these, and many more, phenomena related to the fundamental problem of scarcity in one way or the other.